Celiac disease is a digestive disease that damages the lining of the small intestine and creates malabsorption of nutrients (minerals and vitamins) from food. Celiac disease manifests itself as wheat intolerance and seizures in children and adults. This is caused by a protein called gluten, which is found in wheat, oats, barley, rye, barley, triticale, spelt and kamut.

When people with celiac disease eat foods containing gluten, their immune system responds by damaging the small intestine. Specifically, tiny fingerlike protrusions, called villi, on the lining of the small intestine are lost. Nutrients from food are absorbed into the bloodstream through these villi. Without villi, a person becomes malnourished--regardless of the quantity of food eaten.

Because the body's own immune system causes the damage, celiac disease is considered an autoimmune disorder. However, it is also classified as a disease of malabsorption because nutrients are not absorbed. Celiac disease is also known as celiac sprue, nontropical sprue, and gluten-sensitive enteropathy.

Celiac disease is a genetic disease, meaning that it runs in families. Sometimes the disease is triggered--or becomes active for the first time--after surgery, pregnancy, childbirth, viral infection, or severe emotional stress. The symptoms of Celiac disease, including wheat intolerance and seizures in children and adults vary in severity.